Very disturbing, VERY scary.

When 8 year old Sandra Cantu went missing, we prayed for her safe return. When her body was found stuffed into a suitcase, dumped in a pond, we prayed for her murderer to be swiftly brought to justice. It has now come to light that she was sexually assaulted and murdered - by her best friend's mother.

This is something that doesn't come up too often. We always warn our kids of stranger danger, but normally, the predator we have in mind is some creepy pervo guy. Sadly, as this story reminds us, that is not always the case. As a mother, I've always hesitated to let my child stay at a friend's - more so especially if dad, stepdad, mom's boyfriend, or big brother is in residence. It never occurred to me that a woman, the mother of a child, could perpetrate the same heinous crimes that we all fear befalling our children.

This should make all parents stop and think about who is watching your child - even when they're just playing at a friend's.

Re: Very disturbing, VERY scary.

That's really incredibly sad. My parents were pretty lenient when it came to letting me sleepover at friend's houses. If they didn't trust the family 100%, they would suggest that their kids come sleep over at our house - it always worked out in the end. When my cousin was in 2nd grade, she slept over at one of her best friend's house, she had known the family for 4 years, and the dad of the family sexually assaulted her and his daughter. It's a pretty sick world, best wishes to the family.

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined." -Henry David Thoreau

Re: Very disturbing, VERY scary.

As an aunt who has a handful of nieces and nephews, I protect those kids with my life. although I am not their parent, they are my blood and pray to the good lord that he watches over them. I am not the strictest of aunts, but when it comes to them playing around and going to other people's houses, I'm always on the lookout and I warn my brother and sister if I sense something that does not seem right.

May she rest with all those beautiful angels and god bless her sweet little soul.

"Your dead if you aim only for kids. Adults are only kids grown up, anyway." Walt Disney

Re: Very disturbing, VERY scary.

Certainly this is a massive betrayal of a child's trust in a grownup, and the entire act, and it's sordid details, are just unspeakably evil. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the little girl's family. It must be especially hard with the home just down the street from their own (the suspect was living with her grandfather).

And I feel sorry for the grandfather, and his church, and its parishioners, who undoubtedly are doing a lot of soul-searching at the moment. The church's web site has/had an open comment section, and some of the remarks put up there were just disgustingly distasteful.

What I just can't get over are the pictures of the accused woman. Look at those eyes. Something there is just plain spooky.

Re: Very disturbing, VERY scary.

Re: Very disturbing, VERY scary.

Over in the Nick Adenhart thread, Radiobarry reminded us that are we not innocent until proven guilty? And then even if all evidence points toward a conviction, does not the one who is accused of the crime still deserve a fair trial?

Personally I feel that there may be a lot more to this case and I'm sure more will be brought to light. However, only 7% of all murders from 2007 are committed by women and very few of those involve any sexual assault. Moreover, the Tracy,Ca police have been unable to provide a motive for the killing and the autopsy report has not been completed yet.

It's just so completely unfathomable that anyone could commit such heinous acts to their daughter's best friend and if she is responsible, Miss Huckabee is an utterly depraved soul who deserves the harshest of punishments. If she's not responsible, a killer remains at large